July is over! Where did it go?! These last few weeks really sped by, but we packed them pretty full. It was much more of a go go go lifestyle than I’m used to in summer. Though at the same time, we really haven’t done that many things I thought we’d be able to do. But dwelling on that will only make me feel like a failure and I don’t feel like I failed at all this month. It’s been a good month.
1 – Live by the mantra “No Extras”
Okay, I definitely failed at this one. I did cut my spending A LITTLE. But…PRIME DAY, you guys. I definitely indulged in a few book purchases, as well as some extras I didn’t absolutely need. I also went a bit crazy buying some new yarns for doll hair. It wasn’t great. But I also MAJORLY cut back on my in store purchases because I barely ever went to them.
2 – Work as much as possible to earn a break in August
I made 31 dolls in July. I didn’t have a very consistent work schedule, but probably averaged three full days a week of sewing, with a few hours here and there the other four days. I might have actually had more productive days than I have during the school year because I knew how focused I had to stay on work days in order to buy myself some freedom to do fun things with the boys the other days. I also had 27 sales in July, selling 32 dolls. For summer, that’s pretty great. Especially since none of those were holiday/seasonal dolls – just fun and creative dolls I made purely because I felt inspired to! I still don’t exactly feel like I earned a few weeks of vacation, especially since I didn’t adhere to my no spending rule. But…I want to enjoy my trips as much as possible and I’m not going to add on the pressure to sew any more until after I’m back from Texas.
3 – Enforce the no screens before noon rule
So, give an inch and they take a mile, right? ONE TIME I let them play early. Because a friend was over and she was upset about something and they were trying to cheer her up. I was really busy and just wanted them to leave me alone, so I gave in. And every single day since then they beg me allllll morning long to let them play early. SO FRUSTRATING. But besides that one time, I’ve stayed strong. I really wish they’d just accept it and move on with their lives instead of spending all morning every morning moaning about the rule. But…it worked.
4 – Go to at least 3 Madison dog parks
We went to two. And the second one was today. It was so hard to find the time! Plus it’s been crazy hot for most of July. I love the Madison dog parks, but it’s so hard to justify driving that far and not be able to run any errands or go into any restaurants or anything afterward. So earlier in the month we went to the Token Creek Dog Park. And today we went to one in Sun Prairie. BUT we took Annie with us to Cedar Lake on the 4th and we took her to a family reunion at a big park last week. So, four new places.
5 – Read my shelves, including at least 2 nonfiction books
I did read a few books from my shelves, but not as many as I had hoped to. I’m still madly trying to pack in my Book Bonanza authors, and those books are all on my kindle. I’d definitely like to stay focused on reading my actual books in the coming months.
6 – Make a wish list of things to do with the boys this summer
I never made a formal list, but we did come up with a few ideas here and there that we’d like to do before summer is over. Many of those we’ve already done! We went on an awesome two night vacation in Warren’s earlier this month, had a Madison foodie day with Grandma, and did a few local things. There are a couple of restaurants we’d still like to go to this summer, and a few outdoor things if the weather and time allows. But I think we’re doing a pretty great job of finding low key, yet memorable ways to spend our summer.
7 – Be intuitive to what I need – emotionally, physically, mentally
To be honest, I’ve had some emotionally rough days this month. But I’ve also had a lot of good days. I feel like I really hit my stride in taking proper care of myself and being alert to what I needed day by day, hour by hour. It definitely helped I had five friend get togethers! I had a great date night with Greg and we’re heading out tomorrow for a little getaway. I spent a few days hanging out with my mom, a few days with the other side of the family too. And I’ve done lots of fun things with the boys. The only thing I’ve really been lacking is substantial time to myself. But I’ve been making the most of the moments I can find. Today I was really itching to do something just for me, so I went to the antique mall to just walk around and hunt for treasures to add to my dolls. It was exactly what I needed. The only thing I’ve really been missing out on is solid chunks of exercise. I try to walk Annie when I can, but it’s hard to do in the hottest days. I should be doing things in the house, but…it’s hard. It’s really not the priority it should be. Survival is my only goal in summer!
That’s it for July! It’s probably one of the best summer months we’ve ever had. I usually try to give myself a break from sewing deadlines in summer, but I think having that outlet and direction to most of my days has been a really good thing. I start getting too emotional and anxious when I feel aimless. I really don’t have any regrets about the past month, and for summer? That’s AWESOME.
